


A New Life

by dieFabuliererin



Series: girls and boys [2]
Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2008) - All Media Types
Genre: Childbirth, Episode: s02e10 The Deserter, F/M, Falling In Love, Love, Marriage Proposal
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-18
Updated: 2020-11-18
Packaged: 2021-03-09 17:49:24
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,404
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27610270
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dieFabuliererin/pseuds/dieFabuliererin
Summary: Cut knows how to take lives, but he never thought he would bring anewlife into the universe.
Relationships: Cut Lawquane/Suu Lawquane
Series: girls and boys [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1940242
Comments: 1
Kudos: 29





	A New Life

**Author's Note:**

> I know Jek was born before Cut came onto the scene, but let me enjoy writing this fic, please.

Cut spins when he hears the tread of footsteps behind him, his pickaxe raised in a menacing manner towards the threat. He curses himself for not keeping a better eye on his surroundings as he worked in the field.

Suu, the owner of the farm, stops in her tracks, lifting her hands in surrender, “It’s only me, Cut.”

Kriff it; when will he learn that Suu and her daughter are the only people around for miles?

“Sorry.” He mutters, dropping the pickaxe to the ground like it’s on fire. He wipes the sweat off his forehead, “Do you need me for something, Mrs Lawquane?”

“How many times must I ask you to call me Suu?” She teases, smiling as she rubs her large belly. “It is time for dinner.”

_Dinner. The main meal of the day, taken either at midday or in the evening. Should feature a balance of vegetables, protein, grains, and healthy fats._

Cut shakes his head out of military mode, as if it’s possible, “Yes, ma’am.”

She smiles as if she’s amused, “I am not your superior, Cut. I am your landlady and friend.”

He allows himself to smile back at her, finding her cheerfulness contagious, “Yes, Mrs Lawquane.”

Suu turns to go back to the house, only a hundred or so metres away, but she suddenly halts, leaning forwards and clutching her stomach.

Cut practically teleports to her side, panic consuming him, “Are you alright?”

She nods with tightly closed eyes and gritted teeth, but she doesn’t straighten. Cut, unsure of what to do regarding a heavily pregnant woman being in pain, wraps a ginger arm around her shoulders lest she collapses.

He really should’ve paid more attention in anatomy class.

Suu exhales slowly, leaning all of her weight against him. Cut says nothing, letting her rest against him until the… _whatever it is_ passes.

“I’m alright.” She says after a few minutes of panting hard. Her entire frame trembles as she stands upright again, and her hands automatically cradle her stomach, “I’m alright.”

“Are you sure?” He asks, as if he could help manage the pain. He’s a solider for kriff’s sake, even if he’s a deserter.

He’s only just learnt how to farm, let alone how to care for a pregnant woman.

 _Another month_ , he tells himself, _then he can leave_.

After Suu gives birth, she’ll no longer require his assistance with the farming and he’ll return to the GAR, prepared to accept the punishment for his crime of desertion before joining a battalion and going to the front lines once more.

The voice in the back of his head protests, _don’t you like this life better?_

“It was the baby.” Suu says, seemingly over the pain but still clutching his arm until her nails make crescent-shaped marks in his flesh. At least through farming, he’s been able to keep up his fitness. “He is preparing for his arrival.”

The months have flown by.

When Cut crashed landed on her planet and sought shelter in Suu’s home, she was only a few months into her pregnancy, and now, she thinks she’ll be giving birth any day.

The thought terrifies him.

Suu told him that her late husband helped deliver their first child, and part of the reason why she wanted Cut to stick around was so she wouldn’t be alone in the second delivery.

Cut thinks she’s insane. Who in the universe would want a clone trooper with nightmares of war, pain, and blood to be their delivery partner? He can hardly keep _himself_ calm on the best of days.

Childbirth was _not_ covered on Kamino.

Still, she provides hot meals for his stomach and a roof to cover his head. All she’s asking for in return is help with the crops. It’s not a huge ask for him to sit with her during the birthing process.

“Are you sure you won’t consider going off-world to stay in a hospital?” He asks quietly as they start to walk towards the house, Suu’s grip on his arm becoming lighter as she regains her strength.

“We cannot afford to let the harvest go to waste.” Suu replies, her hand that’s not holding him resting atop her protruding stomach. How she’s able to stand up straight with such a heavy weight on her front, Cut will never know.

Women are incredibly powerful beings.

Suu is unlike anyone he’s ever met, and some nights he can’t stop thinking to himself, _if you never crashed here, you would’ve never met her._

Maybe the universe has a fate in mind for him.

He helps her up the few steps into the home where Suu welcomed him all those months ago. Back then, he thought he would stay for a week, just until the droid forces cleared out and he screwed his head on straight.

He isn’t sure why he’s stayed so long. The work is laborious but rewarding. In the war, he never got to enjoy the peace which he worked hard to achieve on different planets. Here, he grows the crops, tending to them by hand before getting to eat them with his landlady and her daughter.

He also enjoys the company. He loves his brothers- and misses them dearly- but there’s laughter in this home, and so much peace. Suu is a kind woman who is utterly selfless, and her daughter, Shaeeah, is quickly following in her footsteps.

“Here is your plate, Mr Cut.” The young girl grins up to him, presenting him with an overloaded dish of deliciously aromatic food.

Maybe the amazing food is another reason he likes it here- homecooked dinners beat rations any day.

“Thank you, little miss.” He returns her smile, taking the plate and setting it on the table. Suu’s in the kitchen area, carving the nuna he caught earlier that week.

He leaves the table, his inner soldier senses tingling with worry as he enters the kitchen to see Suu bent over the counter beside the roasted nuna, her nails clawing at her lekku and knees shaking.

“Mrs Lawquane?” He asks, panicked. This can’t be normal, can it? He knows kriff all about babies and pregnancy, but she shouldn’t be in _this_ much pain.

“Cut.” She sounds like she’s trying to hold back vomit as she lifts her head.

“I’m going to call for help.” He tells her, already going for the single transmitter in the entire household which is above the basin which Suu uses to wash Shaeeah in.

“No,” she garbles, reaching for him. Her fingers grasp the hem of his shirt, “Cut, no!”

His training takes over as he feels the shirt restraining him. _Break free, eliminate the threat._

Cut spins, bringing the side of his forearm down against Suu’s wrist so she releases him. He doesn’t really register his movements until Suu gasps and pulls her hand to her chest, holding it tight.

His eyes widen. “Mrs Lawquane, I’m so-”

She recoils from him as he reaches out, fear in her eyes. Cut feels his blood run cold. Why does he have to be _so damn military_? How _dare_ he hurt the woman who welcomed him into her home, her safe space?

“I-” Kriff, his mouth is dry, “I didn’t mean to-”

“Cut.” Suu snaps suddenly, and he flinches as he prepares for a sharp reprimand, maybe even the threat of reconditioning.

Wait, no, this isn’t Kamino.

“Look at me.” She demands, and slowly, Cut shifts his gaze from the wall behind Suu’s head to her blue eyes.

He knows this is the brink of their friendship. Suu’s going to kick him out, and he’ll have to go back to the Republic. He doesn’t have anywhere else to go, and he certainly can’t stay here.

She must hate him. Cut can’t even get ready for dinner without his soldier sense going haywire. What if he gets Suu or Shaeeah seriously hurt one day?

“Come here.”

He obeys without question- she may as well be his Jedi General- and Cut moves to stand in front of her.

“Give me your hand.” She outstretches her palm, the one he hit staying close to her chest. He can already see the bruise forming on her pink skin. He wonders if he fractured it, or- “Cut.”

Snapping out of his thoughts, he passes her his hand. Her fingers close around his and Cut takes a moment to savour the softness of her palm compared to his calloused and tough one.

Suu pulls his hand down, pressing his palm to the side of her stomach before he can protest. He’s about to question her when he feels it.

Something is pushing against his palm from inside her.

“That is his foot.” Suu explains, her accent strong as she becomes passionate. “He is strong.”

A baby’s foot kicking against his palm from within his mother’s womb. Cut isn’t sure why he falls to his knees, but he does.

A lump lodged in his throat as Cut leans his forehead against her stomach with one hand pressed to the side, feeling the baby kick. The baby that will be born someday very soon. The baby that Suu will deliver.

Clones aren’t born. They don’t have mothers, nor do they nurse or cry like babies do. From his vague memories, Cut remembers the nurseries on Kamino being a dark grey colour- because apparently, this colour helps develop sharper vision.

He wasn’t handled by another sentient until he was at least one year old. For the first twelve months of life outside his vat, Cut was handled via conveyor belts and mechanical cranes.

The child growing inside Suu will be born into flesh arms, and nurse off his mother to grow strong.

It’s bizarre. Kamino uses the best technology in the galaxy to grow clones in test tubes, and Suu is doing all of that work naturally.

It’s incredible.

He’s overwhelmed with gratefulness to be a part of something so special, so personal, so sentient.

“You see, Cut?” Suu speaks gently from above him, “I do not want a foreign Doctor because a foreign Doctor will not love my child as I will love them. I will not have my child being handled by a stranger.”

Then what’s he? A friend?

Cut reluctantly pulls his hand away from Suu’s stomach and stands. Her eyes are glassy with tears, but she smiles. “Will you help me deliver him into the universe, Cut?”

He nods, “Of course, Suu.” Her smile widens as her first name slips past his lips, going to lower her hands when he stops her, “May I see?”

Her smile falters as she offers her hand, and with as much care as possible, Cut examines her for any injury, “Can you move your fingers?”

She does, although a twinge of pain passes over her features as she wiggles her fingers in his palm. Her wrist is swollen slightly, but he can pass off the risk of any fractures or sprains.

“I’m sorry.” He says, holding her hand for a moment longer than necessary before letting go.

“I forgive you, Cut. Your training is bred in you, and I cannot hold you accountable for that.” She smiles, turning back to the nuna, “We better eat before the food goes cold.”

“Let me carry it.” He offers, collecting the tray in his arms.

Their mealtime is filled with laughter, just like every night in the cosy farmhouse. After Geonosis, Cut didn’t see any of his vode laugh for quite so time. It’s nice that the war hasn’t affected Suu and Shaeeah all the way out here.

It _shouldn’t_ bother them- it’s not their problem.

He lies awake that night. The nightmares are worse some nights than others, so he tries to evade sleep. A good night would involve only waking up twice with a scream about to escape his throat, and the worst nights include him eventually moving to sleep on the floor in Suu’s room- at her request- so she can calm him.

Sometimes, he wakes up and grabs the nearest weapon.

It’s dangerous. He shouldn’t be near Suu or Shaeeah whilst he’s like that, so he chooses to sleep on the ground floor, underneath the dinner table so he feels a bit more protected.

This night, a nightmare doesn’t stir him. He’s only fallen asleep for an hour or so when he hears a sound from outside.

Even though he’s exhausted from a whole day of manual labour, Cut bolts upright, nearly hitting his head in the process.

He slowly moves through the house, checking on Shaeeah and then Suu, only to find the woman isn’t in her bed like normal.

Panicked, he runs outside with the intention of hunting down whichever bastard dared to capture her- then he sees the barn light is on.

_Find a weapon, attack the intruder- protect the woman and child._

_Children_ , he corrects himself, _there’s another life inside Suu which may be in danger._

He stalks slowly towards the barn with a shovel raised. It’s not much of a weapon for simple folk, but in a clone’s hands, it could be deadly.

Cut moves with military-like precision, his eyes trained on the ajar door to the barn for any type of movement. He wants to catch the intruder off guard, making it easier to bash their brain in.

He hesitates outside the door, gathering a breath to barge in and start swinging the shovel towards the first target when he hears a whimper from inside.

Then, “…Cut? Is that you?”

Forget waiting. Cut barges inside, shovel ready for anyone to tried to come at him.

There’s no intruder, only Suu in her nightgown, leaning over one of the benches and groaning in pain.

“Mrs Lawquane.” He kneels beside her, one hand on her shoulder as he looks out for an ambush, “Is there someone here? Who hurt you?”

“N-Nobody.” Her hands find his shoulders, and then she slumps onto his lap, “It is… the baby…”

“What’s wrong?” He asks, throwing the shovel away and lifting Suu so her head in against his shoulder. His hands subconsciously go to her stomach.

“He is ready-” Her words get cut off as a wave of pain rips through her, and Suu chokes, “He is coming, Cut.”

He feels the colour drain from his face, “ _Now_?”

This _can’t_ be happening. A baby seriously can’t be about to come out of her _you-know-where_ , can it?

“S-Soon,” Suu rests her forehead against his neck, and it’s slick with sweat. “I am nearly… nearly dilated enough-”

This time, she does scream in pain, and Cut flinches as the sound sets off all types of memories.

It’s the same sound clones make when their legs and arms get blown off by landmines.

He sees Dodger in his mind, only the top half of his body remaining after he stepped on a landmine. Poor sod; it would’ve been better if it killed him. Cut had to drag him across a klick of jungle to get the medics, and by the time he got there, the man was dead.

The screams echoed in his ears for weeks afterwards- the screams of a dead man who he couldn’t save.

“Cut,” he glances down at Suu’s watery eyes, “I know it is hard, but I need you _here_.”

“I’m sorry,” he mumbles, and his arms wrap around her in an apology. _Don’t get distracted, soldier._ “Isn’t… isn’t your water supposed to break first?” He remembers hearing the medics throw that phrase around.

“Already happened,” she mumbles against his neck, and only then does Cut register the lower half of her nightgown is soaked. “I have been having contractions all evening, but they are-”

“More frequent.” He finishes for her, trying to get his head around this. What happened to her in the field and in the kitchen must’ve been contractions. How was he so blind to see that?

“Can you…” Suu takes some deep, steady breaths, “rub my lower back, please?”

“Of course.” He shifts her in his arms, starting to rub the small of her back. As soon as he touches her, he realises how much _he’s_ sweating. It’s cool on Saluecami at night, but he feels like he’s crammed in an overheating tank on Felucia.

“T-Thank you….” She gasps, “Kriff! Another one- _argh_!”

He’s never heard Suu swear before, and it’s unsettling to see her in so much pain. Cut keeps on rubbing her back, using his other arm to keep her upright, “Just breathe, Mrs Law-”

“My name is _Suu_.” She bites out angrily.

“Sorry, Suu.” Her name on his lips feels so foreign, “How much longer until-”

Suu suddenly throws her head backwards, a low guttural groan escaping her chest. “Kriff, kriff, kriff…”

“Udesii,” he says, even though he’s panicking as well.

“What the hell does that mean?!” Suu snaps, glaring at him as he lowers her to the floor.

“It means easy, relax,” he explains, moving his hand from rubbing her lower back to massage her shoulder, “You’ve got this; you’ve done this before.”

“My husband was a Doctor!” She cries, her back arching.

That detail was left out.

A curse slips past Cut’s lips on accident. How the heck can he compare as a birthing partner when her dead husband had medical training?

Suu props herself upright against a stack of hay for the animals, one hand slipping under her nightgown to touch a place that Cut doesn’t even want to think about. He fixates his eyes on the wall, feeling like he’s imposing on something incredibly private.

“Okay…” Suu inhales sharply, “I am going to start pushing; I can feel the head. He… _kriff_ \- he has lekku, so you will need to-” her eyes clench shut, “you will need to help guide him out.”

Cut swallows. He thought he would just sit by her head and coax her through the pain as he’s done to dozens of clones during painful medical procedures. Now, she wants him to be _involved_?

“Uh…” he stumbles over his words, “I don’t think I can.”

“You _have_ to.” Suu snaps her eyes open and glares at him, “If his head gets stuck, my son will die, and I will follow suit.”

The thought shakes him to his core.

He imagines Shaeeah in her bed right now. How will it look if she wakes up tomorrow without her mother and only the clone stranger in her house?

“Okay.” He agrees, his voice shaky. “Okay.”

Releasing Suu’s shoulder, he moves down to kneel between her legs, his fingers clutching the hem of her nightgown. There’s a fluid of some sort on the floor, seeping through the fabric of his trousers, but Cut ignores it.

“It will not be a pretty sight.” Suu warns him as he lifts the nightgown over her knees.

She’s right. It’s not very pretty at all. In fact, Cut can feel his dinner coming back up.

“It’s fine,” he lies, because after all, he’s seen fields full of headless bodies before, “What do I have to do?”

_You’ve got this, soldier. Follow orders, and you’ll be fine._

“I am going to push,” Suu says, and it sounds like she’s trying to convince herself instead of him, “As soon as you see his head, you need to guide him out. Do _not_ pull, just guide.”

He almost snaps a salute, “Yes, ma’am.”

“ _Cut_.”

“Yes, _Suu_.” He corrects himself, giving her a small smile.

She offers her own back, and he swears done that Suu has never looked more beautiful. He’s always thought she’s a fine woman, but now she’s glowing, and she’s giving him such a tender look, he can’t help but whisper, “You’re the most magnificent woman I’ve ever met.”

Suu raises an eyebrow at him and Cut snaps his mouth closed. _Why did he say that?_

“You’re not so bad yourself.”

He glances back at her, unsure if he’d heard her right, “Pardon?”

She smirks, but before she can offer a witty remark, a look of pure terror crosses her face and her hand shoots out to him, “Help me, Cut!”

He takes her hand, trying to keep his eyes on the inside of her legs. He doesn’t expect her to grip his fingers like her life depends on it, letting out a sharp scream as she starts to push.

Cut goes lightheaded from the sight before his eyes. There is _so_ much skin getting stretched.

“Cut!” She shouts angrily, and tears are streaming down her face.

He’s pretty sure she’s going to break the bones in his hand at this rate.

“That’s it,” he says, trying his hardest to be encouraging, “You’re doing great, Suu; keep going.”

“I’m not going to kriffing stop, am I? _Argh_!”

“There! I can see the head!” He announces, his nervousness soon fading into excitement as he spots the light-coloured flesh and two tiny lekku, so small and stubby that they’re hardly visible. “Alright, I’m going to help guide him out!”

“Don’t get too excited about it.” Suu grunts, her grip on his fingers tightening even more. This woman is _strong_.

“I’ve got the head; are you ready to keep pushing?” He asks, glancing at her face. “What’s wrong?”

She’s sobbing silently, fat tears rolling down her cheeks. Cut feels his heart stutter. “He… my husband was s-so excited when Sh-Shaeeah was born… I… I can’t do this!”

“Hey, look at me, Suu.” He manages to get her eyes on him, “I bet he’s looking down on you right now and absolutely grinning.” She gives him a small smile, but she doesn’t stop crying. “He and I are so proud of you. You just need to push a bit more and then you can welcome your son into the universe, alright?”

“You… you are proud of me?” She asks quietly.

“Absolutely.” He assures, and he isn’t lying. “I fought in a war, Suu. I saw and _did_ some horrible things to other people- I thought I’d done it all, but this-“ he nods to where he’s sat, “this is something that not _one_ clone would be able to do. That makes you a million times stronger than I am.”

He gives her hand a gentle squeeze even though pins and needles are shooting through his forearm, “A few more pushes, and it’ll all be over. I promise.”

Cut leans forwards, pressing a kiss to the back of her knuckles, “Come on, Suu, let’s do this.”

She nods, stiffening her upper lip, “O-Okay, Cut.”

He rolls her nightgown to her hips, giving him a better view of what’s happening. “Whenever you’re ready, cyare.”

_Kriff, Cut! Shut up!_

Thankfully, Suu’s too busy pushing to focus on his words.

She screams, the sound making Cut wince, and then there’s a beat of silence…

Followed by a young cry.

He looks down at his hands. Sat in his palms is a tiny, slimy baby.

A baby.

Oh kriff, he’s holding a new-born baby and it’s belting its little lungs out.

“Cut…” Suu breathes.

He shuffles to her side, eyes fixated on the tiny lifeform in his hands. It’s too much to get his head around.

“Why’s he crying?” Cut’s voice is deadly quiet as he passes the baby to Suu who has pulled her nightgown aside, revealing her chest. “Is something wrong?

No,” she answers, her voice mirroring his in softness. “A crying baby is a healthy baby. It means he can breathe.”

Oh. Should he have known that? That makes a lot of sense.

Suu holds up her finger, letting the tiny, crying baby grab hold of it. “He is perfect.”

“He’s incredible,” Cut breathes, not drawing his eyes from the baby boy who Suu just brought into the world by her own amazing strength, “Udesii, little one.”

“Udesii,” Suu echoes.

He can’t believe it. He’s never seen such a young child- it’s only seconds old. How cool is that? Dodger always loved kids and he would-

Cut sits back on his knees, his mood plummeting as he looks around them for some sort of distraction, “It’s getting cold. Should we take him inside?”

“Is it cold?” Suu asks, not looking at him as all of her attention is on her son.

Cut frowns, pressing the back of his hand to her arm. She’s warm to the touch, and his heart jumps to his throat. “Let’s go inside, Suu; I’ll carry you.”

He’s about to scoop her up, but then he pauses, “What’s this?” He points at the blue cord hanging between mother and baby, hesitant to touch it due to its slimy coating.

“The umbilical cord. It is the father’s duty to cut it.” She fumbles around the hay for a moment before holding out a pair of sheers, “Here.”

His eyes widen, “Suu, I’m not the-”

“Cut.” She finally pulls her eyes away from the new-born to look at him, her gaze penetrating even though she looks exhausted. “Marry me.”

Did she just-

“What?”

“I mean it.” She stretches out a hand to grab his own, “I’ve grown to like you, Cut, and I like you a lot. Please, become a part of this family. Be my husband and be a father for my children.”

His mouth opens, but no sound escapes.

“I have not asked for a lot in life, and I am sure you have not asked for a lot either.” Suu says, and Cut feels a weight to her words, almost like she’s trying not to beg. “Let’s give ourselves what we truly want: a lifetime of love and happiness.”

Their lips press together- light and hesitant. Cut feels a swarm of emotions override him and it becomes hotter and heavier. He tastes the sweat on her face as her lip is sucked into his mouth, and he suddenly realises why he’s been hesitant to leave Saluecami. 

He’s in love.

He breaks the kiss, resting his forehead against hers. He stares into her beautiful eyes, “I accept, Suu.”

She smiles like she’s just won the lottery, and lifts one hand to touch the side of his face, “I have wanted to ask for a while, but I assumed you were going to be up and gone.”

“I won’t leave you.” He promises, “The war can be won without me.”

Now, the woman in front of him, the new-born in her arms and the girl in her bed are the most important things in his life.

Screw the war, and screw the Republic.


End file.
